Can a daughter inherit property from her mother's inheritance?

My mother has inherited a property in Kanataka from her father several years ago. Apart from this property, another large property, also in Karnataka, was given to her and her 3 siblings by way of a court decree. Both these properties were self acquired by my grandfather.
Now, my mother wants to bequeath / will her share in the joint property and the other property she inherited fully to my brother. Is she well within her rights to do so? Do I have any legal rights at my end to challenge this.
Thank you.

Asked 1 year ago in Property Law from Bangalore, Karnataka

Religion: Hindu

The law says that any property in the hands of a married women becomes her own property and she has full rights to dispose the same in any manner she may desire so. Therefore she is very well legally right in her decision to transfer her entire properties to her son by gift deed or by will or any other method she may prefer to do so. Since legally you cannot claim any right over the same or can stop her from going ahead, an amicable situation and talks by including some elders of the family may bring some respite to you, try to rope in some elders to bring some solution to your desire.

1) your mother is absolute owner of her property
2) it was self acquired property of your grandfather which was inherited by your mother
3) your mother can bequeath the property as she pleases
4) you have no share in said property

1. Your mother, being the beneficiary of property given to her by her father, which is a self-acquired property of your grand father, becomes the absolute owner and she will be within her rights to give it to anybody, including your brother.
2. However you can challenge the gift deed executed/to be executed by her , as also the WILL to be executed in your brother's favour only, depriving you.

Dear Sir,
Thank you for your answers. While I accept that my mother can give away her property as she deems fit, Mr. Shashidhar Sastry mentioned that I could challenge the will, so I would like to know if I can challenge this based on the following information:
1) I have been there for my parents throughout my adult life and have always been helping them in all matters big or small such as when they had issues with property matters, health related issues, running errands for them despite having a busy professional and personal life and more. In short I have never shied away from my responsibility towards my parents and have always been there for them.
2) In contrast, my brother, who is married and lives abroad with his family, has not taken on any responsibility for any of their well-being so far.
3) My mother pines for her son to return to India, so much so that my brother convinced her to give him all her life savings, amounting to Rs. 50 lacs by citing a business venture he claimed he would start back in India. After investing that money in a farm land, he has now dropped the idea of business completely, but my mother does not seem to mind that there is no business now nor the fact that she and my father have no money left for any emergencies.
4) She now intends to will away all her income generating properties to him as well in the hope that he may return to India for good. This includes both the property she inherited as well as my parents' self acquired property, all of which is registered only in my mother's name.
5) While my mother is not mentally ill, she is emotionally unstable and suffers from a personality disorder called Narcissistic Personality Disorder.
6) She has deliberately kept me away from everything in the last few months and refuses to talk to me or interact with me.
I feel that my brother is taking undue advantage of this situation, especially the current rift between me and my mother, and is pushing for this will to go through at the earliest. Therefore my question of whether this can be challenged keeping the above in mind.

Asked 1 year ago

1) if any will is executed by your mother she can always revoke it during her lifetime
2) your mother is of sound mind and is not suffering from any mental illness
3) she can by will bequeath property to her son . it has to be attested by 2 witnesses
4) on your mother demise you can challenge the will on grounds of un due influence as your brother manipulated your mother in such manner that entire property was bequeathed to your brother .

1. First of all the contents of a WILL takes effect after the death of the testator and should be attested by two witnesses.
2. The question of challenging the WILL arises only after the death of the testator and the testator can change the contents of the WILL, write a fresh WILL any number of times and the last WILL will only be considered after the death.
3. Whether your mother has already executed the WILL in favour of your brother only?.
4. Why can't you convince your mother based on the points you have mentioned in the letter like your help during her health related issues and also your looking after her during crisis and convince your mother to share her property to you also, alongwith your brother, when she executes the WILL.
5. Even though your mother is not mentally ill, according to you, she suffers from a personality disorder and is emotionally unstable, do you have any evidence of medication relating to her personality disorder and unstability, like medical prescription, medicines used, hospitalised for such reason, etc. so that the same can be used as evidence in future, in case of you want to challenge your mother's WILL after her lifetime.
6. To conclude, I sincerely feel that somehow you should convince your mother to share her property to you also, by way of Gift Deed during her lifetime or through execution of a WILL, which takes effect after her lifetime.
7. In case your mother does not execute the WILL during her lifetime and dies intestate, then all the legal heirs, i.e., your father, you & your brother will get 1/3rd share in your mother's self-acquired property.

Dear Querist,
You must understand one thing that there is no place for sentiments in law. You might have serviced your parents through out your life, but say whether you are expecting reward in the form of property for the services you have done to your own parents. It becomes your filial duty to take care of them Hence you cannot claim anything in return by force quoting your duty towards them. The sentimental issues cannot fetch you an entitlement fora share in your mother's property and as I told earlier, I reiterate that having absolute title in the property, her decision to transact with the property in the manner she chooses cannot be challenged. She is the absolute owner of the property hence she can legally transfer the property in favor of anyone of her choice, if you are not satisfied with this opinion, you may consult any other expert lawyer in your locality.

1. Every will is open to challenge in a court of law, but not all the challenges succeed. There has to be a legal ground to strike down the will as illegal.
2. That you looked after the well being of your mother whereas your brother shirked his responsibility does not render the will as illegal.
3. The will made by your mother is perfectly legal.

1. Doing works for your mother including running errands do not entitle you share in your mother's property,
2. While bequeathing her properties to her son, your mother does not have to show any rationale for her said decision. She needs to be just mentally stable for legally writing a will before two witnesses,
3. However, if you can prove lateron that she was mentally unstable hence legally unfit to write a will, then you can challenge the said will after your brother applies for probate of the will on demise of your mother.

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